Volume 2 Issue 9 | June 2019
Please join us at our first Home & School Club meeting of the new school year on August 19th at 7pm in the Leigh Library. All are welcome!
Read minutes from past meetings  here . 
Thank you to our 2018-19 Board and Committee members...

  • President - Aine O'Donovan
  • Vice President - Tamara Strachman
  • Treasurer - Amy Hogg
  • Auditor - Doug Evans
  • Membership - Kristi Haftorson
  • Recording Secretary - Jenny Green & Ann Auld
  • Corresponding Secretary - Carmel Lynch
  • Parliamentarian - Gretchen Gabriel
  • Campus Beautification - Kelly Masini & Tamiko House
  • Staff Appreciation - Carol Hofheimer & Susan Lovelady
  • Communications - Aine O'Donovan & Amy Gardner
  • Fundraising & Community Building - Jayme Monroe
  • Parent Ed - AnaMaria Guevara, Amy O'Hehir & Janae Pierre
  • Grad Night - Kristina Williams, Ann Auld & Jen Petroff
  • District Rep, Facilities - Tamara Strachman
  • District Rep, Finance - Paula McHugh Jack
  • District Parent Rep - Susan Dahl
  • Sports Booster Liaison - Kristina Williams
  • Spirit Booster Liaison - Claire Whitehead
  • PAPA Booster Liaison - Sean Simonson


And we extend a warm welcome to our 2019-20 Board and Committee members...

  • Co-Presidents - Aine O'Donovan & Tamara Strachman
  • Vice President - Ann Auld
  • Treasurer - Amy Hogg
  • Auditor - Doug Evans
  • Secretary - Jenny Green
  • Parliamentarian - Gretchen Gabriel
  • Technology/Google Drive Support - Rama Nemani
  • Volunteer Coordinator - Ashleigh Coffeng
  • Communications - Amy Gardner, Angie Lu & Susan Smith
  • Community Building, incl. Freshman Orientation, BTSN and Leigh Stampede - Susan Dahl, Oren Katzir
  • Campus Beautification - Kelly Masini, Tamiko House & Ashleigh Coffeng
  • Staff Appreciation - Carol Hofheimer & Susan Lovelady
  • Grad Night - Kristina Williams & Ann Auld
  • District Rep, Facilities - Tamara Strachman
  • District Rep, Finance - Paula McHugh Jack
  • Sports Booster Liaison - Kristina Williams
  • Spirit Booster Liaison - Claire Whitehead
  • PAPA Booster Liaison - Sean Simonson

Where did we spend our money this year?


Through our Annual Giving Drive, we raised $28,125 in donations and $7,229 in Corporate Matching. Thank you for your generous donations that allowed us to fund the following:

Classroom Resources
  • $100 was granted to each of our 82 teachers for classroom resources

Staff Grants
  • Annual subscription to bablingua.com usable by all Spanish teachers at Leigh
  • Books for in-classroom library for English Dept.
  • Books and materials for the US and World History depts to support common core as well as the new History Social Science Framework Adoption
  • Tub of 2000 Color Plastic Tiles from EAI Education for use in Integrated Math 1 and Integrated Math 2 students, to visualize patterns in linear and quadratic functions
  • 2019 Chinese Lunar New Year Celebration and Teachers Appreciation Lunch for Mandarin 3 & 4
  • Neo Smartpen N2 and ten 150-page notepads for AP Macroeconomics & Gov
  • Instant Video: The Great Courses: Investigating American Presidents & set of learning cards for AP Government & Econ
  • Three Cuisinart Pro Custom 11-Cup Food Processor for Foods I & II classes and the new LHS Culinary Club 
  • Lab supplies for Climate Change Unit for Biology Dept
  • Music materials for Wind Ensemble, Concert Band, Symphonic Band, and Jazz Bands
  • AP Psychology & Psychology resources for activities and books fr classroom library
  • Registration Fee for Science Olympiad Green Team for the Santa Clara Regional
  • Printing of the Senior Edition of the Eleight newspaper
  • Registration fees and materials for Project Lead the Way for Tech Challenge competition


Staff Appreciation
  • A large team of volunteer parents, coordinated by our Staff Appreciation committee, provided monthly treats for teachers (breakfasts, lunches, flowers, tokens of appreciation, cards, letters and more!).

Parent Education
  • October 2018 - Angst screening and panel discussion  
  • November 2018 - Screens are Everywhere: Help Guide your Teen's Usage 
  • January 2019 - Conscious Parenting: Emotional Wellness in Teens
  • February 2019 - A Backpack of Life Skills; Helping Students Transition Successfully to College  
  • March 2019 - What do you consider lethal? A talk for parents to attend with their teen driver by Impact Teen Drivers.

Campus Beautification
  • May 11, 2019
  • 30 Volunteers 
  • 100 new plants
  • 25 white rosebushes donated by from Madrona Garden Works
  • Two truckloads of mulch spread
  • September 22, 2018
  • 40 volunteers
  • 967,303 weeds removed 
  • 330 yards of landscape fabric installed 
  • 100 plants in the ground ready to grow 
  • 40 volunteers with sore backs 
  • 40 yards of mulch mountains moved 

Communications
  • Community outreach via Constant Contact
  • Website hosting 


We are also extremely grateful to Leigh families for the following very generous donations: $10K from the Robert Family Foundation, and amounts of $6K, $15K and $25K from anonymous donors. The HSC, Ms. Butler and the donors worked closely together to ensure the funds were used in the most impactful way. The money was allocated as follows:

  • Library upgrade ($10K)
  • Donation to individual departments ($1K to each of our 12 departments)
  • Technology in the library ($10K)
  • Technology in the classrooms ($3K)
  • Science Dept ($3K)
  • New Computer Principles class ($10K)


Thank you to everyone for your generous donations and thank you so much to all of the volunteers who coordinated and/or supported the above activities and projects!


Thank you for making a difference at Leigh.
It takes a village - this is your village!

Where else do our volunteers share their time and talents?


Grad Night
  • A dedicated team of volunteers coordinated what promises to be an amazing night for our seniors on June 6th. Countless hours were spent planning, communicating, selling tickets, fundraising and, oftentimes, losing some sleep!
 
College & Career Center
  • 23 volunteers support the CCC which is headed up by staff member Nathalie Goricanec
  • Volunteers assist students in locating information regarding colleges and universities, in finding SAT and ACT dates and registration information, in discovering scholarship and financial aid opportunities, and by answering questions about the college preparation and application processes. Also provide resources for students who may be looking at vocational and job opportunities after high school.
  • Hosted Career Spotlight Series
  • Hosted mock ACT and SAT testing
  • Planned a College Fair and a Career Pathway Expo with the District
  • Share a bi-monthly newsletter
  • Hosted 90+ college representatives at Leigh
  • Matched 78 students with Job Shadow opportunities in the community
  • Offered numerous Workshops to Junior and Senior students regarding the College Application process
  • Hosted several Parent Information Nights
 
Registration Day Support
  • A team of volunteers, coordinated by our Membership Team, supported registration days

Book Room Support
  • A team of volunteers, coordinated by our Membership Team, supported the Book Room at the beginning and end of the school year.

Longhorn Stampede 5K Run/Walk
  • This event was spearheaded by the Home & School Club for the first time this year. A huge team of volunteers was needed to plan the event and to ensure the event ran smoothly on the day. More details below.
Home & School Club Newsletters 2018-19


If you would like to review updates and happenings for the past year in more detail, please browse through our monthly newsletters located here.
Take our Home & School Club Survey


Please fill out our survey and share your feedback regarding the Leigh Home & School Club. Your input is important to us so that we can continue to improve and be an even better resource for our students, staff, and parents! Thank you!
Longhorn Stampede 5K Run/Walk Recap
Spearheaded by the Home & School Club, the 5th Annual Longhorn Stampede was held last Sunday, June 2nd, and was a huge success! We were very fortunate to have the support of our other Boosters (Sports, Spirit & PAPA) as well as the Leigh Staff. And of course we had an amazing team of parent and student volunteers both for the planning and organization in the months leading up to the event and on the day of the event. We are beyond grateful to everyone for their support. Thank you to everyone who participated - runners, walkers, volunteers, sponsors, guests of honor, and our incredible neighborhood who came out in force to cheer on the participants. We truly have an amazing community! 

Check out highlights on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/LeighStampede/

View Stampede Photos: We have two photo sites with photos taken at the start line, on the course, and at the finish line. Feel free to share, download, post, print, copy, etc. Enjoy!

  1. Stampede Photo Site #1 - Courtesy of Konrad Michels - Leigh Parent, Etienne Michels - Leigh Junior, Cole Pena - Leigh Senior, and Eva Strzelecka - Leigh Parent
  2. Stampede Photo Site #2 - Courtesy of Linda De Los Reyes - Leigh Parent
Are you shopping on Amazon for summer supplies? Or at Target? 


Shopping on Amazon? 

Use our dedicated Leigh Amazon link when shopping with Amazon, and Leigh Home & School Club receives a % of the amount you purchased. Bookmark this link for future shopping 'trips'! The link is always available on our website. Does your company shop at Amazon? Then refer this link to the person in charge of purchases. Anyone can use this link and Leigh will benefit.


Shopping at Target, Apple, Macy's? Use eScrip

Earn automatically when you shop online at stores like Apple (1.2%), Best Buy (1.2%), Target (1.2%), Macy's (4.8%), Old Navy (2.4%), and many more! Register at www.escrip.com to start earning now! Install the "ForgetMeNot" browser plug in and you will get a reminder if a site that you're shopping at gives contributions.
Why Do Parents Volunteer at Leigh?


We asked our Board and Committee parents why they volunteer at Leigh. Here are some of the responses...

"I volunteer because I want the school to run well and efficiently, and the more people that help, the better a school will be."

"To be the change we want to see."

"I am a huge supporter of public schools and the role they play in bringing our community together. Leigh Home & School Club plays a vital role by allowing parents to provide further support for our school's mission. As a Board member I get to help direct and focus this parent support to provide maximum benefit to the students. I also get to be involved in the community and meet all of the amazing administrators, teachers, students and parents."

"I volunteer to serve as a role model for my children so they will see the value of volunteering in our community and want to do the same when they are older, and to learn more about Leigh from the teachers' and administration's perspective."

"I volunteer because I believe there is a direct correlation between parent engagement and student success. It is important to show our students that we care. This can include anything from being aware of what is happening on campus, to showing up for an hour to help on a task, to organizing an event in its entirety. If I only make a difference in the life of just one student, then I am happy!"

"I volunteer because I want to make a difference in our community, and be a part of creating a positive environment for all of our students, parents and teachers."

"Home & School Club is a non-profit, volunteer organization whose main focus is to foster a healthy, positive school environment for all students. Volunteering allows me to make a contribution to the school and stay aware of what is happening at the school and in my students' academic lives. It also allows me to hang out with some really wonderful people."

"I volunteer because I enjoy giving back to my community, supporting our amazing staff and making Leigh a better place for all our students. I enjoy knowing what is going on in the school, because my students don't always communicate everything with me!"

"I volunteer because I want to have a positive influence on the school and because sometimes we have the option to complain or do and it's always better to 'do.' I volunteer because I want to role model for my children (if you want change, make it happen), and because it's rewarding to give back to the community - and it's appreciated!"



We would be delighted to have you join our team next year!
Please reach out to the HSC president at president@leighhsc.org. We would love to hear from you!

Leigh High Home & School Club | http://www.leighhsc.org